Our Brewmaster Dan launched his Wild Fruit Cave this winter brewing Oud Bruin, a Flander's style ale that is immensely complex both tart and sweet. Soft toffee notes lead with a blend of Wisconsin, British and German malts that first rested in the Coolship before spontaneously fermenting on oak in the cave. Hallertau hops, matured in the horse barn, elegantly support sparkling fruit notes that frolic before a punctuated oak finish. 100% naturally fermented in oak vessels this is beer that can be enjoyed now or the patient few can lay in their personal cellar to age.

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Poured from a bottle into a Bell's tulip. Awesome-looking pour! It's clear and dark reddish-brown with a big clumpy lasting crown of foam. The nose is a bit subdued, but I still get nice notes of cherries, toasted oak, and honeydew melon.

Nice firm feel and a tart flavor that contradicts the sweetish notes I got on the nose. Good fruity sour notes up front that are not overly aggressive. There is a fair amount of vanilla-like toasted oak character to complement it. The sour notes don't carry all the way to the finish. Towards the back of the palate, they kind of die out and there's something of a vacuum left in its wake. If this beer had some fruity notes to fill that space, we'd be talking about a top-shelf beer here.

Another really good Thumbprint beer from New Glarus. I like the fact that their sours are not crazy sour. I realize some BAs gravitate towards beers that taste like fruit soaked in sulfuric acid, but not me. This kind of beer should be a refreshing aperitif, not something to devour the lining of your stomach. (1,041 characters)

As enigmatic as oud bruin ale are, their tepid sourness and earthy toasted character is what New Glarus has realized best in their Thumbprint sour brown.

Its rusty garnet color highlights the toasted nature of the ale along with its reddish cherry decoration. And much of that is founded as the nose opens up with toasted oak, tangy vinous fruit and a musty soil-like nature. However, that first creamy-sweet sip proves to be more malty than dry.

Its middle is off-toffee, toasted and nutty- taking on a charred oak flavor that nearly rivals the sweetness of cherry cola. But as the ale unfolds, its souring taste sets in with mild balsamic, cider and merlot-like must.

Creamy throughout, the finish comes way of malt richness that imposes over that of dryness or souring agents. Even for the reserved brown ale, the tang found here is incredibly soft- an unfailing choice for those seeking favor in the sour ale families. (925 characters)

New Glarus brewing an Oud Bruin? Will this be on par with Enigma or Cranbic? The body looks the part. A murky, muddied brown liquid inhabits the glass. The fringes of the glass show a slight orange hue but this beer is straight brown. The foam is impressive. Thick and creamy with a yellowed hue and incredible staying power. The head never recedes below a finger in height and leaves behind sheet lacing with even thicker drink lines.

Metallic notes sway toward minerality and back from the beginning. A drizzle of cherry laden balsamic vinegar makes me salivate. Minerality seems to grow with each successive inhale. Honestly, there's not much depth. There's no barrel character and the only funk at the moment is the minerality throughout. As this bruin warms sweetish apple notes reveal themselves.

Unfortunately, the flavor is much the same as the nose. There just doesn't seem to be much there.The minerality runs from start to finish in the form of wet stone and iron. Sweetness runs through the middle, easing the minerality slightly, with apple and very mild cherry. There's not much tart, again no barrel, and the finish is indistinctly sweet. There is no pop or brightness. It's just kind of there.

The body feels like there's a touch of heft off the bat but as it moves over the tongue it gets thinner and thinner until the finish leaves nothing in its wake. As soon as I swallow it's almost like I drank nothing at all. A tartness so soft it's hard for me to actually label it as such lingers. The finish eventually dries up.

I have to say, I'm pretty disappointed in this newest offering from New Glarus. It's in no way bad. As a matter of fact, the flavors that are there are good, just mild beyond recognition. The finish is nearly nonexistent. I had very high hopes for this beer, especially considering it's the first release from their fruit cave. I assume they're just working out the kinks. Into the basement the rest of these go for sometime down the line. (2,037 characters)

Picked up 12 bottles of these tasty little guys in a trade with Ksecler. Poured into a Ichtegem's Oud Bruin glass.

Pours a deep unfiltered brownish copper hue with a fat tan head that lingers with massive amounts of lacing. Aroma is sweet and malty, fruity and slightly acetic. Flavor is rich and malty up front , giving way to tart grapes and wonderful woody flavors that linger on the palate with nice mouth puckering sourness on the finish. Mouthfeel is on the lighter side of medium bodied, extremely dry and effervescent. Overall delicious summer time beer and a great representation of the style. Definitely better as it warms and opens up a bit. Could see this cellaring well. (685 characters)

T) Follows the nose... Funky and oaky. Tart fruit and some malt sweetness. Good balance....

M) Lighter medium body with lively carbonation. Tartness coats the palate. The finish is rather dry. The aftertaste improves as the beer warms.

O) This beer has steadily grown on me since my first bottle back in July. Not in the same class as the Wild Sour Ale from last summer, but still really good. I think a little age will help too. In any case, I'm pretty stoked about what's in the works in that Wild Fruit Cave. (868 characters)

Poured from a 12 oz. bottle into a tall New Glarus Signature Pilsner Glass.

Appearance: Pours a deep and hazy brownish amber with a lot of bubbles and a big three finger off white head with decent retention. Leaves a lot of lacing clinging to the glass.

Smell: A sweet, tart, and fairly sour malt forward aroma with big hints of fruits, oak, and spice. Toasted malt with hints of toffee, caramel, biscuit, and yeast. Candied sugar and some spice hints of cinnamon, clove, and pepper. Hints of oak, wood, leather, and tobacco. Big fruit aroma with hints of tart cherries, berries, and green apple along with dark fruit hints of grapes, fig, prune, and raisin. Background hints of earthy and spicy hops. A very good aroma.

Taste: Like the aroma, a nicely sweet, tart, and sour malt driven taste with good notes of fruit, spice, and oak. Toasted malt with bready notes of biscuit, caramel, toffee, and yeast. Spice notes of cinnamon, pepper, and clove. Sweet notes of candied sugar. Good notes of oak, tobacco, and leather. Big mix of fruit esters with notes of cherries, berries, green apple, dark grapes, raisin, fig, and prune. Subtle backing notes of earthy and spicy hops. A really good taste.

Mouthfeel: Medium bodied with a fairly high level of carbonation. Creamy, juicy, spicy, and sour with a fairly drying finish.

Overall: A very good take on a Bruin. Good mix of fruit notes and spices. Kind of like a cross between a Dubbel and Sour Ale. (1,454 characters)